Before You Leave
by Mira-LoZ
Summary: Pre-Ocarina of Time: A short and cute one-shot between Saria and Link. Happens a little bit before the events of Ocarina of time and the plot is changed slightly.


**A/N I have moved all the stories from my previous account to this one, to make things a little easier for myself. I created a second account due to loosing forgetting my original's log-in information for a long time but have figured it out. I deleted the original of this entry and have re-posted it here, and plan to re-edit most of my stories soon.**

 **This is just a little SariaxLink one-shot I wrote for fun, I hope you enjoy! Leave a review to let me know what you think :)**

 **Disclaimer: I don't own Legend of Zelda: Ocarina of Time. I wish I did, but I don't.**

 **Before You Leave**

 **SariaxLink**

The first thing he heard in the morning was the sound of birds chirping at his window. The young boy rolled over onto his side towards the wall and tried to ignore them but it was to no use. The birds continued to chirp in his window as if they were on a mission to wake the boy and after a few minutes of pointlessly trying to fall back to sleep they were victorious as Link decided to give up.

He sat up in his bed and glared at the group of birds that had decided to loiter in his window, three of them each with a different color. The three birds seemed to be staring right at the boy, and he couldn't help but think there was something weird about them. usually the birds in Kokiri Forest flocked with those of their own color but here sat a Green, Blue, and Orange bird simply looking at him. It sent a chill up his spine.

"Shoo birds!" The boy shouted and moved towards the window frame causing them to scatter. Link had a big day ahead of him, and he didn't want anything to cause problems. Today was the day that he and Saria would be going out to play in the woods together. And when Link had asked if she'd invited anyone else she told him that he was the only one.

A goofy grin grew across the boy's face as he began to get ready. He grabbed his tunic and his boots, quickly getting dressed as he knew that she would be there soon. Every morning, no matter when Link woke up the Kokiri girl seemed to just know and she would come right over. She couldn't explain how she knew, but he didn't really mind. And the best part was that it drove Mido crazy.

Just as Link pulled his second boot over his foot he heard her voice call up to him. it was much more pleasant than those noise birds. "Hey Link! I know you're up so come on out here!" He laughed quietly as she called him, if Mido had heard that he'd probably be kicking a stump or something. Link quickly straightened out his tunic and grabbed it's matching hat, putting it on as he stepped out the open door to the Kokiri Village.

Link stepped over to the edge of the ledge that his treehouse had been built on and smiled down to his friend Saria. from up there she looked like a tiny green fairy. "Hey Saria! Good morning!" the boy spun around and began to climb down his ladder to meet the green haired girl. once he reached the bottom and turned to her, that's all that he saw; Saria had inched closer and now her bright green hair and smiling face filled his vision as he stumbled back into the ladder.

"Haha! you should have seen your face" Saria stepped back and laughed, crossing her arms in front of her chest. Link glared at the girl but no matter how upset he looked she knew he could never be angry with her. Saria was Link's friend; his only friend. "Do you remember what today is?" She asked still wearing a goofy grin.

Link nodded happily and straightened out his tunic again. he seemed to do that a lot around Saria. "Today's the day you take me into the woods." Link had never really been more than a few minutes from the village before, his whole life he had stayed in the little clearing of the woods. But it wasn't that strange, most of the Kokiri had never left either, and probably never would. But Saria was special, the Great Deku Tree allowed her to go wherever she wanted in his forest.

Today, The Great Deku Tree was allowing her to bring Link. Saria grinned and nodded at the boy, spinning on her heels and beginning to walk away from him. "That's right Link! Today I'll take you out to where I usually go when I leave the village" This excited Link, not only did he get to leave but he got to go to Saria's 'usual spot' as she called it. Nobody else had ever seen it.

The two wandered through the village and Link tried to avoid eye contact with the other Kokiri. Saria would wave and smile at them but to Link they were not friends. The other Kokiri would always pick on him for not having a fairy, they'd call him names and tell him that he wasn't a Kokiri. For a while he listened to them, but then Saria began to stand up for him and soon he learnt to phase the others out.

"Hey Saria!" Another Kokiri shouted from atop a large pillar. The two looked up to see Fado standing high above them. "Where are you going?" As usual the other girl did not mention Link, whenever he was with Saria she would kind of just ignore him. Saria always knew it bugged the boy but she wanted to be friends with everyone and therefore smiled up at the blonde girl.

"Link and I are heading out into the woods" Replied Saria which put a confused look on the other girl's face.

Fado moved to sit on the ledge so she was a little closer. "What? What do you mean you're going to the woods with him? Saria only you can go into the woods..." Fado seemed upset, but after a second her frown turned into a sneaky grin. "Or are you just taking him and laving him out there? Do you plan on leaving Link in the lost woods?" the blonde Kokiri laughed at her own comment, and Link looked down at his feet.

The boy knew that Saria wouldn't do that, and he tried not to take it seriously, of all the Kokiri Fado and Mido were the worst to him. the others just joined in when they were around. Fado continued, adding "He doesn't even have a fairy Saria, if he gets lost he'll never make it back to the village."

At this Saria frowned, something rarely seen in front of the other Kokiri. Link noticed and inched away slowly. When Saria frowned it meant she was really upset and would often get angry. His thoughts were confirmed as the green-haired girl shouted back up the the blonde "You think he won't make it back because he doesn't have a fairy!?" Fado didn't reply, but she stopped laughing and for a second looked a little scared. "Well neither do I! I left her at home today." With this Saria spun around and grabbed Link's wrist, pulling him behind her as she walked away.

Fado was shouting at them as they left, something about it being too dangerous to go but Link barely heard her as he tried to speak to Saria. "W-What? Saria you don't have your fairy?" Link tried to match the girl's pace to move up beside her. they seemed to be headed straight towards one of the entrances to the forest and Link felt his heart sink in his chest. she was serious.

Saria stopped their advance and turned to the boy, her old smile back on her face. it was almost scarier than the frown. "Nope!" She said smiling and holding her hands behind her back as she often did. "I don't need her today."

The boy's strange look prompted Saria to continue, so she explained "The Great Deku Tree has told me that today I should take you to the forest and show you my usual spot. He said that I needn't take my fairy as you'll be able to guide me home." And with that she let out a small giggle, moving to run into the forest. Link froze, unable to process what he'd just heard.

After a few seconds of just standing there in shock the boy shook his head and decided to run after the girl yelling "What? Saria I've never even been in the forest how would I-" His foot planted at the edge of the clearing, thick forest only one more step in front of him. he couldn't even see a few feet ahead through the trees. "How would I know how to get back?.."

After waiting for a minute for Saria's response the boy began to get scared, she had just run in without telling him anything. Was he supposed to follow? wouldn't he get lost? and then to add to his confusion and uncertainty he heard the one voice he disliked most.

"Hey fairyless boy!"

Link let out a sigh, and then slowly turned to face the other Kokiri. Mido, his number one source of harassment. The other boy stepped closer, a large grin playing across his lips. "I hear that you were supposed to be going into the forest with Saria today. Well there's the forest, but I don't see Saria. Did she go in without you?" Link tried to keep his cool, relaxing the muscles that had begun tensing up and smiled at Mido.

"That's right, Saria said she would take me to the forest today." Link tried to sound confident, he knew that that would annoy Mido. "And she just went ahead, she's waiting for me right now." Again he attempted to sound confident but Mido saw through it

The dirty blonde haired boy grinned, and instantly Link felt inferior to him. "She did leave you!" he laughed and took a step closer, causing Link to step back and place his foot out of the clearing. For a second he was startled but quickly realized it felt almost soothing. the long grass that tickle his ankles were calling to him and the boy liked it. This feeling was nothing like the home he'd spent his whole life in, it was comforting. He took another step back, now fully under the branches of the forest. Mido's eyes grew large and Link knew he'd gotten the upper hand

"Mido, you can come hang out with Saria and I." for a second the other boy looked confused until Link finished, "If you're not too scared to come into the forest." and with that Link turned and began moving into the trees. It wasn't so bad, he actually kind of liked it. He could hear Mido shouting at him to stop but didn't listen and instead quickened his pace until he no longer heard the other boy.

Link had to stop to catch his breath, running through the trees was much more tiring than over the flat grassy earth. After taking a second to rest he looked up and realized that he had no idea where he was. He didn't even know which direction he had come from, none of the branches around him looked bent or traveled. "W-what's going on.."

The music of Kokiri Village could no longer be heard, replaced now by an eerie silence with the odd wolf's howling in the distance. Link had no idea what to do, where to go, was this the lost woods everyone was always talking about? He decided that moving was better than standing still and began to walk forward. Not that he knew where forward would take him. Again he hear the howling of a wolf, but it was getting closer. And then another off in the opposite direction. And then another.

Link began to run, not at full power but close. Whatever was making that sound it was not a normal wolf. The three of them seemed to be communicating, surrounding him. Link had no idea what to do or where to turn, when he began to hear something. Music, it was quiet but he heard it. An upbeat tune filled the forest as Link's pace matched the beat. He hadn't even noticed that he was running towards the music until he burst through the trees into a clearing. Finally a clearing.

Link fell to his knees panting and attempting to get his breath, the wolf-like cries seemed to have stopped and for even just a moment he felt safe. "Saria... Where did she go?..."

The music came to an end and instead Link heard a soft giggle, the one that he had grown up listening to. It was her. Link slowly raised his sight until he saw the girl of his thoughts sitting on a stump in the middle of the clearing; Behind her was a massive stone building. Before he could say anything Saria took the lead

"I'm so glad you made it." she spoke softly, Link stood up and began walking forward to hear her better. "I started playing the second I got here, I knew you would find me if i played my ocarina!" Link slowly nodded to show that he heard her but still it made no sense. He finally got within a few steps of the girl and she patted the stump beside her.

It was hard and uncomfortable, but he sat as Saria began playing her music again. It filled the air with a soothing warmth and Link found himself getting lost in it. the forest spirits danced through the air around the two, their long worm like bodies reflecting the sun's beams into amazing rays of light all over the place. The boy closed his eyes, simply basking in the warmth and the music. The sun's warmth wasn't all he felt though, Link could feel Saria's body pressed against his and felt a new warmth rush to his cheeks.

It seemed to last for hours, but when the music eventually came to an end and as Link opened his eyes he saw that the sun had barely moved. Turning to the green haired girl Link smiled, adding "Saria that was amazing! why don't you play your ocarina more in the village-" he was cut off by the look on her face.

Saria was looking down at her feet, and although Link couldn't see her lips he knew that they were frowning. "Because.." she began, and Link waited quietly. "I only want to play it for you. I've been practicing lots you know, because one day I'll need to show you how to play it..." At this Link stayed quiet but moved a hand over to Saria's bare knee. He had no idea what was going on but felt like he should't interrupt. Saria had never sounded this sad before and it was upsetting him as well, she felt tense under his fingers tips. She continued, adding "Link sometime soon you'll be leaving the forest. The Great Deku Tree has told me that you may not even be here for another month, but I don't like it.. that's why I took you out here today. The Deku Tree didn't ask me to, I just.. I wanted to be alone with you for once away from the village.." Saria moved her hand over Links, which startled him. Her hand was warm to the touch and softer than he'd imagined

Link sat speechless, he had no idea what to make of what Saria was saying. "leave the forest?" He began, gripping the Kokiri's hand tighter. "Saria why would I ever leave the forest? This is my home, I belong here!" Saria withdrew her hand from Links which instantly left an empty space where it had been and retracted it to cover her face. the girl was looking down anyways so Link couldn't see anything through her green hair but he knew what was happening. As if to confirm his thoughts a wet tear hit the palm of the boy's empty hand.

Link moved his arm back and placed a hand on Saria's shoulder, turning her to face him and frowned. "Saria, I'm not going anywhere! I promise!" The Kokiri girl just shook her head and slowly looked up at him, tears welling up in her eyes. Link had never seen Saria like this before, he'd never seen her look so.. weak. Something inside him clicked and he realized that the only thing he wanted was to protect Saria so she would never have to be this upset. Link wrapped his arms around Saria tightly, pulling her close and whispering "It's okay. I won't leave, I'll stay here with you in the forest."

The Kokiri girl's body was trembling, but even though she was upset Link couldn't help but enjoy the feeling of holding her. It was different, strange, warm. Saria pushed herself closer, and Link tried to balance himself as to not fall off the stump but it was no good and the two fell to the forest floor. Saria landed on top of Link with a squeak, and the boy had the air knocked out of him but quickly recovered

"Saria, are you okay?!" Link asked worried he had hurt her but his doubts ended when he heard the Kokiri girl laughing. "Uhm.. Saria?.." he asked confused but only got more giggling in return. Saria didn't move, she stayed on top of the boy and even as he tried she wouldn't let him get up

After minute she calmed down and replied,still chuckling a little "Link, you're great you know that? you're not like the other boys." Link remained silent, he had no idea how to respond. first crying, then laughing, he had no idea what was going on. Saria inched her face up from his shoulder to look him in the eyes

As green met blue Link realized that Saria had never looked more beautiful. the way the sun shone through her bright green hair and the smile that played on her red lips made his heart beat in his chest but he didn't understand why. "Uhm.. Saria?.." was all he could manage, however at this she simply grinned even wider

Saria let her head dip a little lower, now all Link saw was her bright green eyes starting back at him. he could feel her breath on his lips and felt a strange urge to lean up but resisted. "You always were the silent type Link, but that's okay." Saria leaned down and placed her lips against Link's ear as she whispered softly "that's one of the things I always loved about you" With this she leant back to look at the boy beneath her. Link could see that her cheeks were bright red as she made direct eye contact with him

Link's eyes had widened and his body had gone stiff. That word, love, he had only heard it spoken by the Great Deku Tree to the Kokiri of the forest. it meant to care for something more than anything else. "Saria.. you're the leader of the Kokiri, you can't choose me over the others.. you have to like us all the same.

At this Saria frowned for a second, looking down at Link's chin in thought. " that's true.. but if that's how it has to be..." Link waited for the green haired girl's response as he moved a hand over hers. he really did like Saria, every time he saw her his heart would beat in his chest and every time she left he felt empty inside. A tear hit his cheek, and Link looked up to see his friend crying once again

"Saria.." he whispered and struggled to sit up with her in his lap. He wrapped his arms around her and brought her face close to his again, he had no idea what to do next, just acting from emotion. "If I mean that much to you, then let this be our little secret. we can come out here whenever you want and you can play your ocarina for me. Nobody else will know, alright?"

Saria smiled softly with tears sill in her eyes, and nodded happily. "I'd like that Link.. Hey, can I tell you a secret?" At this Link smiled and held her a little closer, he'd never felt a need to have somebody close like this but with Saria it felt amazing. Maybe whenever they snuck away he'd be able to hold her like this

"Sure, you can tell me anything and I promise not to tell anybody" said Link smiling.

Saria's cheeks flushed again and she moved her face closer to the boy's. "link.." she inched a little closer, her lips now almost touching his. he could feel them ever so softly press forward as she whispered "I love you"

 **So there you have it :) I hope you enjoyed, it was just a cutesy little thing I wanted to write. I've thoughtabout writing a sequal of where he actually leaves but maybe I should just leave it like this? I'll leave it as a one-shot for now, let me know if you'd like to see more :)**

 **Please Review!**


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